The options proposed to the changing of the current block schedule are a good mixture of diverse and creative options. One such option is the A/B schedule.

The A/B schedule is an alternative to the block schedule and consists of breaking all classes into two separate days (‘A’ and ‘B’ days). Thus, one day one group of classes would meet and on the other day another group of classes would meet; they would rotate every other day, opposite of each other. The proposed schedule would entail four classes a day, so within a semester a student would be enrolled in eight (possibly including a study hall) separate classes. The classes would alternate on a six-day rotation

An A/B type of schedule would have benefits to BRFHS. One of the more obvious is the increased time between classes; having a day off between lessons gives students more time to do homework and focus on specific aspects of a class. This break between classes also lessens the intensity of a class. Students have more time to “breathe.” The high school has already implemented an A/B style schedule for a pair of classes, combining AP U.S. History and AP English. As a participant in this experiment, I can say that this type of schedule is really beneficial. With weighted material and the high level of attentiveness required for classes of this caliber, the break from one class to the next is really great and helps when dealing with advanced readings or high-level writing.

But the A/B schedule does not come without faults. Having classes meet every other day takes away from classes where daily, progressive learning is needed in the case of foreign language and music instruction. Also, students would need to be able to manage their time well and plan ahead according their classes. Students would have eight classes that they had to keep track of and get all the homework done for as well. This increase in coursework could prove to be detrimental to certain students.

The benefits of this schedule, I believe, would be very apparent at BRFHS and could help solve some of the current issues with block schedule.